Dan from Wichita writes:

I would like to know the differences between DISH’s DVR’s and DIRECT’s DVR’s. Are there different versions/lengths of time they can record both within each site and against each other? I’ve seen somewhere that they can 100 minutes. That doesn’t sound very long to me. Are there other DVR’s/TIVO that can record longer times?

Dan,

From what I have heard, most people prefer Dish Networks DVR. I’ve used both and I tend to agree, although, back when DIRECTV was using TiVo (before they tried to build their own) I preferred the TiVo DVR. I’ve heard that they may be going back to TiVo.

As far as recording times, the bigger the hard drive the more you can record. HD content is much larger so less can be recorded in HD, but if you don’t have HD and get an HD DVR, you can record a lot more.

On Dish Network’s site, it describes how you can expand your storage with certain DVRs:

DISH Network customers with a DuoDVR™ ViP® 722 or 622 or Solo DVR ViP® 612 HD satellite receiver can now enjoy near limitless DVR storage with the addition of an external hard drive.

I do think it is kind of ridiculous that they charge a one time fee of $39.99 to activate your external storage option. That is just plain robbery!

I couldn’t find specifics on DIRECTV’s site about upgrading the storage on their DVRs, but I did find this blog where a DIRECTV customer was able to successfully expand his storage capacity on his DIRECTV DVR. It sounds as if there is NO fee for “activating” external storage for DIRECTV.

Hope this helps,
Dustin

Jennifer from Minneapolis writes:

Hi,
Thank you for doing this, it’s exactly what I was looking for and what I was trying to do on my own!! I just canceled my DirecTV yesterday after getting frustrated w/ the whole, “we can’t turn your service on b/c you bundled w/ Qwest” & I had already PAID Qwest. Also, we lost a DTV receiver (just a std one) in an electrical storm last summer & I was told that in order to get a new one, we’d have to re-up for 2 more yrs (which I didn’t mind b/c it’s a lot better than our cable options), but it NEVER came! We were paying the extra $5/mo for a service we weren’t even GETTING! Which now is about an extra $65 we paid out that we received nothing for & they weren’t even willing to give us a credit even though we’ve been customers for close to 7 yrs. So I canceled & told them I was going w/ dish Network, & they didn’t even care (at least the reps I spoke w/). Thx again for all of your legwork, I (& I’m sure many others) really appreciate this! Jennifer

Mark in San Diego writes:

Thank’s Dustin……this info from the Dish Network Tech was very informative……this info will go along way to helping me make this decision. Thank you for giving consumers a place to find info that cuts through the advertising smoke and mirrors.

George from California writes:

Web site is useful except for one issue which does not make sense. How can Directv rank #1 in customer service for 7 years in a row as well as dish network being ranked #1 in customer service. Both quote JD power so there is something wrong with this information.

George,

To be honest, I don’t know for sure. The information is a bit old and I wondered that myself. I did some research and found the latest jd power rankings: www.jdpower.com/telecom/ratings/television-service-ratings

I’m guessing that when I originally posted the info they were number one in different areas. They were both #1 & #2 in each area. It looks like in these latest polls they have fallen just a bit to some newcomers.

I’ll be sure to update this information on the site.

Mark from Lemon Grove writes:

Thanks for your web site…..however, this is still confusing to me. So I’ll tell you what my wife and I would like to accomlish.
1. we currently have 2 hdtv’s and will add a 3rd in near future.
2. we still have Cox Cable and do not think they have served this
market very well. So I am researching satellite service. We are
not getting a digital signal from Cox yet. The kitchen table top tv
is the only hdtv (Samsung 19″) hooked up to cable and the picture
is of poor quality. I have been told by Best Buy that I need a
cable top box to decode the signal. I don’t understand why. I
thought Cox would already be sending a digital signal by now. I
think they are dissing their customers. I just bought a Sony 32″
hdtv and it is still boxed. I will hook it up when I get the proper
signal. OK so what do I do?
3. My wife needs local channels to watch the Padres games. I’m not a
big sports fan but don’t mind watching sports like the NFL, MLB,
etc. when guests are over that are sports fans. Premium channel mo
vies, PPV, etc., I could care less–don’t need. Hdtv channels? Why
not? That is why we bought these tv’s in the first place.
4. I want the best service for the best price—I don’t see as yet,
much difference. What consumers really need is alacarte program sel
ection so we can customize our service and not pay for the many
channels avail., but will never watch. Well, since that will prob
ably never happen. Who do we choose? Cox Cable…..screw them!
Direct and or Dish…..don’t know yet.
5. I guess we need an HD DVR and HD receiver. What about TIVO? They’ve
got the best software. Can a TIVO be purchased and used w/ either
Direct and or/ Dish and still get HD programming w/o buying 5000
stations+? I just want the local channels for my wife and Speed,
History, Food, AMC, Discovery, Outdoor, H&G, Travel, and such for
the rest of us. What do you think? What would you recommend?
Thanks for reading this…….Mark

Mark,

I assume that Cox Cable is similar to Comcast. If you use their set top box then you get a digital signal, otherwise it just comes in as analog.

As far as your choice between Dish Network and DIRECTV, they are more similar than not, so its mostly personal preference. Overall, Dish Network is slightly cheaper, unless you get a lot of upgrade packages, then DIRECTV tends to get cheaper. I personally prefer Dish Network mainly because I like their guide a lot better. It just seams faster, it’s easier to tell which channels you don’t have and filter them out, and using favorite lists is easier. I’ve heard some say they like Dish’s DVR better than TiVo and I think TiVo is trying to sue them or something. But if you really want TiVo, I think they only work with DIRECTV. DIRECTV actually dropped TiVo a few years back and people have been complaining ever since. I’ve heard that they soon might be bringing TiVo back.

I hope this helps.